Spring-metal cut-off for hand-planters



I i 1- (No Hodel.)

I SABABGOGK.

SPRING METAL OUT-OFF FOR HAND PLANTERS. No. 276,996. r Patented May8,1883.

fn/penioz". I

N PETERS. "mm-Lithographer Waihingian. D. C.

UNI ED STATES.

PATENT OFFICE.

SVYLVES'IER RBABOOGK, F. ADRIAN, MICHIGAN.

SPRINGe'M ETALCUT-OFF- FOR HAND- PLANTERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 276,996,1ilated May 8,1883;

Application filed August 23,1882. (No model.)

' To all whom itmay concern:

Be it known that I, SYLVESTER P. BABCOG'K of the'city of Adrian, Stateof Michigan, have invented a Spring-Metal Out-Off for Hand- Planters, ofwhich the following is a specification. V The object of my invention isto make a strong, durable, and elastic cutoff for handplanters, thatwillwork with all the reliability of a brush or rubbercut-jofl", and con tinne to do so when arubber or brush with the same amount of work wouldbecome unsatisfactory andalmost useless. i t Figure 1 of theaccompanying drawings is 1' a perspective view of the cut-off complete,and shows the metal support B, to which the spring A is riveted atG.Fig. 2 is a sectional view, and shows the shape and position of the tspringin using; also,a section ofaa plunger, K, 1 1 and seed-cup L. t:The working part of the cut-off A is made of sheet metal of suflicientspring and temper to insure its keeping in shape and of throwing it backto its normal position when thrust aside by thework it is to perform; Itis made a of a stripabout four inches lon g and about fiveeighths of aninch wide. One endof this strip a t t has a bend at Iaboutone-eighth ofan inch back and nearly at right angles with itself, 0 forming the lipD. Then-about one-fourth of l u an inch from the bend I an obtuse angle,E,'is made, and about one-fourth of. an inch from the angleE anotherobtuse angle, F, is made, each being about forty-five degrees. The twoobtuseanglesE and F bring the lip 1) paral- P ss lel with'the body ofthe spring at G. About t I one and a half inch. from the angle F ahalfinch circular bend, H, is made, bringing the other end of the metalstrip parallel to the body at G and about on a line with thelip D. Tothis spring a sheet-metal support, B, about one inch wide and two incheslong, is riveted i at O or near the end of the spring, and at the gcenter and near one edge of the support B. The metal support B isperforated centrally 1 near each end,allowin g screws to pass throughfor a permanent fasteningto the body of a planter. 1

In using this cut-off the pendent part of the spring is placedin asuitable recess formed in l the standard of a planter at the lower endof the hopper, the support B reaching over and resting on each side ofsaid recess.

will lift or the fourth rests on a thin bearing, 0, over an openingtothe lower end of the hopper or seed-chamber and parallel with, thesupport B. The seed has free access to the angle end of the cut-offunder the lip D, so that when the planter is held vertically the seedlies constantly against the end of the spring. .When the plunger K, inwhich a measuring-cup, L, is formed, is lifted to the upper end of itsstroke, the cup L is just above the angle F, and readily fills withseed, then, forcing the plunger down, carries the seed-cup, with itscontents, past the cut-ofi to discharge. Seed partly but not fully inthe measuring-cup must necessarily strike the cut-01f at F, and is heldback by the press-- ure of the cut-off, unless so poised as to bindbetween the cut-off andthe upper edge of the measuring-cup, actingon thewedge shape of the cut-off at F, lifts the cut-0d and allows it to passwithout clogging the action of the plunger or crushing the seed. Shouldthe seed continue to bind after passing the angle F, then the, body at Gcut;olf; but when relieved of the pressure it willinstantl y regainitsnormal position. When rubber or brush cut-offs are used the cornersanswering to the angles F soon wear oh, and

the measuring becomes unsatisfactory unless.

the corners are renewed, while a metal cutoff with proper shape andaction is almost indestructible by the workitisintended to perform. I amaware that some of the features of this cut-off are not new stanced inPatent No. 193,590, issued to me July 31, 1877;: but it' has moreimproved and perfected.

I find that an angle of about forty-five de-- grees is the proper angleat F 5 but the spring should not continue in a straight-line to I.

ThelipD whole pendent portion of the recently been when the pressure ofthe s eed.

at the present time, as in- Should the spring continue in a straightline from the angleF to I, as shown by the dotted line, then when thespring is lifted aboutone of an inch at its upper end, as often is done,the lip D lifts up, and the body of the spring one-fourth of an inchbelow the lip lifts away from the lip-bearing O, and the loose 'seed getbetween the spring and bearing and will not permit the cut-off to resumeits normal position,

and thusis a source of annoyance. Should the angle F be a right angleand the body-of the spring continue in a straight line from F to I, thespring would not lift away from the lip-bearing; but the spring is muchless apt to lift, as the right angle gives a square abutment, and isvery apt to draw down instead of lifting awayi'rom the measuring-cup,

and often crushes the grain or bends the body of the cut-off at G. Theunyielding support of the spring being aboye the line of the angle F, itis seen at once that it is better to have an incline or wedge abutmentat F. Therefore the two obtuse angles, as herein shown, give the inclineat F and the right angle at I, enabling the cut-off to lift easily andavoiding all clogging at the lip-bearing. A circular form of the cut-offat its upper end accomplishes the same object, as in either case theobtuse angle at]? and the right angle at I is the result.

I claim as my invention- A metal spring cut-off, A, secured to a sup- 2c4 port, B, curved at H, and having the spring portion G parallel to saidsupportB, being bent upward at F at an angle of forty-five degrees, andagain bent upward at E at right angles to portion Gr, and bent at rightangles at I, forming 25 the lip D, which normally rests upon the bearingO,v substantially as and for the-purpose shown and described. I

SYLVESTER P. BABCOOK. Witnesses:

S. E. GRAVES, S. M. BABGOOK.

